'My Mother's New Home': A Review of "My Way" by Lady Saw

What would we do without Lady Saw? In my opinion, if there is anything that is to be successful in regards to human beings - ANYTHING - then there simply must be a significant feminine presence involved. Music is definitely included in such a statement and in the case of Dancehall music; I’m not at all going to make any reservations on saying that no female to date has had a greater “presence” than one Ms. Marion Hall - bka Lady Saw. Having reached the point in her career where she can claim nearly two decades in the business, Lady Saw’s career has seen the coming and going (and coming back and leaving again) (and coming back again) of so many female artists, several of whom were supposedly her ’heirs apparent’ that her longevity is . . . Well it’s honestly somewhat strange at this point and not only that, but it seems that despite, age-wise, being well passed her prime years of efficacy as a Dancehall artist, it seems as if, on the world stage, each year (even when she isn’t very active), she gets more and more popular in some respect. Now would certainly be the time to have her popularity at an all time high as Lady Saw ventures out as a businesswoman and an entrepreneur unlike she ever has in the past with her brand new album, the very appropriately titled ”My Way”. The course set in order to get to this point jumped up earlier this year when it was announced that Saw had, in fact, ‘walked out’ (more on that in a bit) and had gone the independent route and on her own, but such notion wasn’t met with the same type of FAKE joy which is typically given to more ‘mainstream’ artists when they do such a thing because they can no longer attract the interest of the big labels. Quite the contrary - Lady Saw had apparently been planning on doing this for some time and the fact that the album was actually on its way was a GREAT thing for her and, by extension, a great thing for Dancehall music in general which, as usual, is starved in 2010 for big name artists to release albums. While Lady Saw definitely bolsters that tiny lot (and if you don’t count Buju’s forthcoming album, which certainly isn’t Dancehall, then outside of Vybz Kartel (which was a re-release technically), she is the biggest name in the Dance to have an album in 2010 thus far and in the foreseeable future). What she also does, more importantly, is to give herself all the opportunity to cash in on her popularity and her WORK throughout the years and does so in the most fitting and most well deserved situation - On her own terms.

Lady Saw has released six studio albums to date in her career, prior to this one, and each and every one of them - from 1994’s ”Lover Girl”, up to 2007’s ”Walk Out”, appeared on industry leader VP Records. The label has also released two of her three greatest hits compilations [ ”Raw: The Best of Lady Saw” in 1998 and last year’s ”Extra Raw: The Best of Lady Saw”], countless singles and who knows how much other merchandise as well. To put it simply - Lady Saw is a VP artist true and through. Even with her final album for the label, the aforementioned "Walk Out”, it almost seemed as if her ’walking out’ and satisfying her contract had become a selling point for the marketing of the album. She was even seen on the cover dressed up, bags packed and heading out of the door and I would say that such a promotion would say exactly how much the label did TRULY like Lady Saw as the two entities had seemingly ‘grown up‘ together in the business. So, for her to go on and continue without the label behind her is yet another very interesting subtext to this already absolutely deliciously fascinating situation. Instead of VP Records, Lady Saw’s own Diva Records is at the helm of ”My Way”, along with Toasting Music, a label which was previously unknown prior to 2010 when they dropped the very smooth 18 & Ova Riddim (and if they do intend to stick around, then a Lady Saw album is definitely a very nice way to make an entrance). Besides the story behind the album coming through, of course, there’s the most important matter of the actual music itself. To my opinion, there was a time from the late 1990’s up until the early 2000’s where Lady Saw delivered what was literally PERFECT Dancehall music. She’d mastered the kind of ‘bouncing’ Dancehall riddims of the time and she didn’t seem to enjoy the same results when things got exceptionally hard and just dark, in terms of the riddims, though she did adjust and come back even stronger. But from a musical standpoint, the last thing heard about Lady Saw’s vibes was also very interesting. It may’ve been 2008-2009 where Saw claimed that she was taking her long crafted x-rated style and making it a thing of the past and she had changed her stripes. Time-wise, ”My Way" would be the first album on which the change would be reflected and ‘visible‘, but ultimately (just as you may’ve expected) (or at least you should have expected) (and hoped), there is certainly enough of the ‘old’ Lady Saw around to give it that genuine ‘extra rated’ appeal that she has literally trademarked in her sound. The album also covers a bit of what Saw has been up to as of late, as she has definitely scored a few nice tunes in recent months (one in particular) which have also kept her name around (as did featuring alongside Nicki Minaj on ‘Dang A Lang‘, a tune on ”Amazing”, the most recent album from US Hip-Hopper, Trina) and current. Therefore, seemingly the only question remaining is HOW GOOD is Lady Saw’s ”My Way” album and how good will it do. As for the latter, we’ll just have to wait, but I’d imagine that the inevitability of this one being plastered on the Reggae page of every version of iTunes will probably help, as will the likelihood of it being similarly shown on ’world music’ pages of a wide variety of types. The former, however, we can answer quite clearly and right now: Fans of Lady Saw’s music, new, old and somewhere in the middle are easily certain to enjoy ”My Way”.

Why? The album proves not to be such a big deviation from what she’s been doing in recent years. That shouldn’t be surprising for, despite just how big and powerful as her former label has gotten and the that she went five and half years without a studio release, REALLY it’s going to be hard for me to imagine someone telling Lady Saw what she can and cannot do musically. So while this album is OFFICIALLY called ”My Way”, the phrase could also, presumably, be used as a title for the last decade or so of Lady Saw’s career, if not the whole of it.

“Mi no need no makeover
Mi no waan no butt lift
Mi no waan no belly tuck
No facelift”

A rather agitated Lady Saw starts things out on the album’s first track, the cougar-affirming ‘Every Way Mi Go’. Basically what Saw is saying on the tune is that she ages very well and she eschews the miracle creams and not-so miracle surgery in favour of just taking care of herself properly and working out. There is certainly a greater message here, but the tune is literally vintage Lady Saw in terms of the attitude and while hopefully the message does carry through, the IMMEDIATE sonic appeal is what makes it an excellent starting point (oh and I don‘t care what you have done Lady Saw, just don’t touch the nose. Not the nose). And then we get a little crazy on the following tune, ‘Your Chick’. This one sounds like a very ‘moody’ Pop song, but again, it’s Lady Saw’s character which shines through as she slowly, but surely (and aggressively) pieces together the notion that the otherwise pretty lonely friend of her man’s isn’t so lonely at all because she . . . Well she has Lady Saw’s guy. You take any other artist and I probably am completely indifferent to the tune in their hands, but this one gets REALLY infectious REALLY quickly in Saw’s frame. ‘Bigga Than’ - With that BOUNCE reminds of that old school type of Lady Saw sound and while it doesn’t quite reach those levels it comes damn close and in the process not only proves itself one of the strongest lyrical attractions of ”My Way”, but one of the strongest tunes altogether. I always feel inclined to mention a song which doesn’t fall within the first few, but it’s probably the first tune on the album everyone knew that was going to be on the album, it’s the first single, ‘Party ‘Til December’. I’m not overly thrilled with this one and I kind of was surprised that they pushed this one initially because it is billed as a ‘party song’, but the vibes are kind of . . . Different? It’s not like a fast and stereotypical dance song, it’s slower and COOL is the word I’m thinking of. It certainly isn’t bad (not even close0, but from the reaction I’ve seen, it’s been doing well so, excellent choice by someone, albeit a bit strange.

When I heard that Lady Saw would (officially) be running the show on ”My Way”, I fully expected her to begin calling in favours in terms of who she would collaborate with, but she didn’t do that at all and instead she keeps the combinations short at just three (see note). The first and by far the biggest name of the trio is rap star, Eve, who checks in on ‘He Is At My House’. You could have probably predicted such a tune between the two, but the way it rolls through is pretty smooth and I haven’t heard a damn thing from Eve (who used to be a bonafide cutie) in more than a little while, so it was nice to hear from her as well and I wouldn’t at all be surprised to see Saw on her next project either. Camar always seems to be an artist seeking to increase his own profile in the music and his tune alongside Lady Saw, ‘Muscle Control’, is one which will certainly help him on that. I’ll speak more about this in just a second, but this is a very nice and danceable type of song, but . . . Yeah there’s something else about it. And lastly is dancer turned DJ, Ding Dong, who guests on ‘I Can’t Wait’. I’m not even a little bit of fan of Ding Dong’s music, but when you do well I give credit and he does well on the kind of love duet song between the two - He actually deejays and doesn’t break out into dance instruction in the middle of the tune, which is to be celebrated, given his history.

Of course, left on her own, Lady Saw doesn’t take the quality of ”My Way” down at all, in fact, as you might imagine, she takes things even higher. The title track is an excellent example. Chances are that you, like me, won’t immediately like this song. It’s very very strange in the way that it’s arranged - It’s not very smooth (outside of that chorus, of course), but it kind of is. I’m also having a very hard time imagining this one not receiving a significant response from the masses for some reason. Call it a Lady Saw special, but the tune works and in terms of the title and how it’s said (“I’m doing it MY WAY”), it definitely makes a powerful statement for the album in general, even though she’s just speaking about how well she treats her special man. ‘Cyaan Get Me’ is a WICKED tune and it is an example of what I meant earlier when I said that Saw had adjusted to the harder riddims, in place of the ‘lighter’ ones which she (at least in my opinion) absolutely dominated. There is some SERIOUS deejaying on the tune which Saw uses to make the point that it’s going to take a hell of a lot more than you might imagine to catch her eye. You’ll also want to check the somewhat hilarious ‘Facebook’, where Lady Saw tries to keep the drama from her social networking sites:

“Mi no waan no mix up pon mi Facebook
Mi no waan no drama pon mi Myspace
If a gyal have a issue haffi deal wid
War mi face to face”

There’s also another BIG tune down the stretch of the album by the name of ‘Beg U’ which should hit hard for the Dancehall heads because that one is SERIOUS. And speaking of “serious”, there’s what is easily my LEAST favourite tune on the album, ‘Crazy Love’. The song is TOO SERIOUS or maybe too crazy. I kind of feel dumb criticizing it on the basis of something which is CLEARLY overdone and done so on purpose, but if you listen to that song and feel like you just got scolded (and I mean personally), for not doing a damn thing then you aren’t alone. Thankfully, Saw turns things back positively for the album’s closer, a tribute to the women, ‘I’m A Woman’. I’m surely not the target audience for this song (nice, beautiful and ambitious woman vs. angry, not too easy on the eyes and jaded old ass man) and it isn’t amongst my favourites, but I can definitely hear its power and ultimate significance so, yes you may’ve very well expected such a song and when carried out it is done so very well.

So that’s it right? New Lady Saw album, ”My Way”. OH! There is the matter of the three little songs that I didn’t mention which feature the old school, a little dirty and incredibly tight lipped under the sycamore tree Lady Saw who just happens to be my favourite. The first example of such a brilliantly powerful entity comes on the Ward 21 produced ’Tighta’ which is exactly what you think it is about. It’s also damn captivating. Not as captivating or ‘gripping’, however, as the album’s finest moment, ‘Me Hold You’. It’s very gimmicky. The tune is a counteraction (in the friendliest way possible) to Gyptian’s hit tune ‘Hold Yuh’. What can I say? I LOVE this song, this is vintage Lady Saw and had she come with it originally, I think it would have been every bit the hit as Gyptian’s breakout tune. The song precedes the aforementioned ‘Muscle Control’ alongside Camar, which also fits in well here, but both precede the tune ‘5 Minutes’ . . . Now I’ll make this point quickly and then put a nice conclusion on this review because there is most certainly something else for me to write it never ends. First of all, the tune is GENIUS, the arrangement of it - Everything (especially the kind of ‘cliffhanging’ piece on the chorus). I love the tune. However, Lady Saw. Mumma Saw. Queen. Marion. If you have it ‘tighta’, the ‘hold’ and the ‘muscle control’ like that - Then the fact that all you get is ‘5 minutes’ . . . Yeah. No shock. None. I mean . . . You should be happy.

Overall, besides what appears to be a brain fart from the legendary DJ, Lady Saw’s ”My Way” is everything that it should’ve been in my opinion. As I said, despite the changes that have gone on behind the scenes (and in front of the scenes for that matter), the actual music itself isn’t very much of a deviation at all from what we know for being Lady Saw’s vibes. However, what I will say is that she probably hasn’t had an album which was as all-encompassing. Throughout ”My Way” Saw does really focus on a variety of different subjects and despite the granted fascination with her . . . Yeah - She does them all very well which is exactly what you’d expect. In situations like these, which involve a major change in ‘scenery’ for an artist in some form, I usually feel the need to speak on how newer fans might react, but I don’t in this case, because besides the few newer ones who will come just because they just heard of her, I really get the feeling here that despite being on her own, this album is for Lady Saw fans. If you are such a person or are potentially such a person - Then ”My Way” is nearly a gold mine for you because what it is, is the same Lady Saw who’s been thrilling you for years. Because despite this one being officially Lady Saw’s “way”, something tells that the undisputed Queen of Dancehall music has been doing it her way for years. Well done.

Rated: 4.35/5
Diva Records/Toasting Music
2010
CD + Digital
{note: The CD for the album has the tune 'I Can't Wait' but lacks 'Beg U' and vice-versa for the digital version of "My Way"}




Lady Saw @ Myspace
Lady Saw @ Facebook

Coming Soon Vol. 22

“No Doubt Records Dub Riddim” [No Doubt Records]

Alright - The biggest thing on the list this week definitely comes via the greatest Reggae producer in the world, Kemar ‘Flava’ McGregor and his label, No Doubt Records who have a very interesting five set release forthcoming with their ”No Doubt Records Dub Riddim”. Okay, first of all this is an outstanding idea in my opinion. Second of all - You want to know what it is - It appears to simply be the instrumentals for the label’s various riddims and that is a HUGE deal to me. McGregor makes the best Roots Reggae music in the world, so when you really dig into the ‘meat’ and substance of the matter, what you’ll find here are riddims such as the Key [Vol. 5], the 83, the recent Happy Heart [both Vol. 1], the Beng Beng, the Ghetto [both Vol. 4] and even the recent Classic Riddim [Vol. 2] and many more as each volume appears to have TWELVE riddims, which is HUGE. This one will rank highly for the hardcore heads (like you and I) and really, for what it is, it’s one of the biggest such collections to be released in a very long time to my knowledge, so biggup the master again as he, perhaps more vividly than ever before, gives the masses an opportunity to REALLY take in his STERLING work.

Potential Rating In Full: 5/5
Releases on September 14
Digital
{note: We were unable to find Vol. 3 of the collection}
{note2: Biggup Bredz for making that picture}

“John John Dancehall Hits” [John John Records]

Okay so, I can kind of/sort of see how some might consider this to be the biggest release of the list this week, but you’d be wrong. Why? Well, first of all the King’s Son, John John, did release this collection, ”John John Dancehall Hits” on VP Records back in . . . Oh 1935 or so, so it has been out there for roughly 200 years by my math. Still, what you’re going to get in between these five releases is copious amounts of WICKED material from the likes of Bounty Killer, the Mad Cobra, Louie Culture, Terry Ganzie, Wayne Wonder and even BROMWELL (and you are FUCKED UP if you remember Bromwell from Scare Dem), which makes it, CLEARLY, a Dancehall collector’s dream. Just sitting here listening back to these tunes and . . . Yeah I kind of get misty eyed because that era was so so sweet and with tunes like ‘Lodge’, ‘Mr. Pleasure’, ‘Iron Gloves’, ‘Merciless Badboy’ and ‘Welding Torch’ (from Lady Saw), it just brings back such great memories. It will for you too, I’m sure.

Potential Rating In Full: 5/5
Releases on Tomorrow
Digital
{note: Is already available on hard-to-find CD. Check Ernie B}

“Like A Lion: Official Soundtrack” [Hemp Higher]

I had/have absolutely no idea who Tanner Hall was/is until I saw this one floating around. From what I gather, he’s quite a popular and damn near legendary skier (who is apparently two years younger than I am) (good for him). So popular, in fact, that he’s even earned his own documentary about his life, ”Like A Lion” and that’s just kind of weird, because when I first saw it, I thought that maybe Tanner had left us already. But no, apparently he is alive and well and definitely that’s great. AND, his documentary has a soundtrack and from what I can tell, Tanner Hall has excellent choice in music because he’s obviously quite the fan (and friend) of one of my own favourites, Cali P and because of that (I THINK), the Gwada born, Swiss resident chanter DOMINATES on the soundtrack to the point where, as he appears on nine of the album’s thirteen tracks, it’s almost like a new Cali P album and that is HUGE to me! With him, he’s brought the likes of Munga Honourable, FANTAN MOJAH, Charly B and Fulklip for Riga and Hemp Higher and I’m DEFINITELY well looking forward to what they have in store (and hopefully they’re not considering this one an official album from Cali and they’ll STILL give us the real deal pretty soon).

Potential Rating: 4.5/5
Releases on September 17
Digital

Scrub A Dub Riddim [Hemp Higher]

Obviously not ones to rest on their laurels, on the same day as the ”Like A Lion” soundtrack drops (and mind you, the Burn Up Riddim is still very fresh on players, having just reached at the end of July), Riga and Cali P ALSO give us the Scrub A Dub Riddim. The name is pretty weird, although after I got a taste of the actual sound of it, I COMPLETELY commend Phantom, Riga and co. for having titled it such, because it definitely has somewhat of an old school sound to it, but in a new age ‘body’. Besides that, however, there’s something VERY VERY interesting about the artists on this riddim. Not only is Cali P on it, twice (more on that in a second), but also on board are the likes of Fulklip, the talented and lazy voiced Raw Raw . . . Of course Raw Raw also appears twice, once on his own and a next shot, on the herbalist tune ‘High High’, alongside Cali and Achis Reggae favourite Tiwony, who also gets his own tune, ‘Pon Di Road’. And then there’s the matter of ‘Wine Now’ which RIDICULOUSLY features Cali P alongside the FLAMING Sara Lugo! SHIT! Can’t wait to hear it and you know crazy vibes on this one.

Potential Rating: 4.25/5
Releases on September 17
Digital

World Beat Riddim [Subsonik/Chiney K Productions]

I believe the last time we heard from Chiney K on a riddim, it was probably back on the WICKED Good Groove, and now they’re back again, with Subsonik, on the new World Beat Riddim, which is another excellent draw from a label increasingly demanding more and more attention from the masses via their work. As far as a full album, the World Beat may be even stronger than the Good Groove as it boasts five more tunes than that nice ten track set. Featured here are artists back from the earlier piece like Sizzla Kalonji, Lutan Fyah, Tyrical and the label’s favourite (apparently) Ginjah alongside newer names like veterans Jimmy Riley, Powerman, Cutty Ranks and Len Hammond as well as Ras Penco and Junior X. History simply is an indicator and it will be the same for this almost certain winner from Chiney K and Subsonik.

Potential Rating: 4.5/5
Releases on Tomorrow
Digital

“Nice Up The Dance: UK Bubblers 1984-87” [Greensleeves Records]

I was almost surprised to not see the term ‘vol. 2’ behind this one because it just seems like something that would’ve already sprung from the obese vaults of Greensleeves, but it hasn’t and instead we get ”Nice Up The Dance: UK Bubblers 1984-87” right now. I like this because the title explains it well enough that I really don’t need to add very much at all. So, instead I’ll just tell you what you can look forward to - The release spans over two discs and at eighteen tracks each, you’re getting thirty-six tracks of somewhat CLASSIC (‘vintage’ figures to be a better word) UK Dancehall. Obviously the star here is Tippa Irie who, between the two discs, checks in with no less than EIGHT tunes, but you’ll also find people like the late Deborahe Glasgow, Pato Banton, Peter Spence, one of my personal favourites - sweet-voiced Tannoi and UNFORTUNATELY Daddy Rusty (if you’re a big fan of Daddy Rusty's then to hell with me, but I cannot STAND his music).

Potential Rating: 4.5/5
Releases on Tomorrow
CD & Digital (I THINK)

Set It Off Riddim [Life Line Music]

I believe the Set It Off Riddim from Life Line dropped maybe three or four months ago and I’m kind of confused as to what may’ve taken it so long to get to an album format, but here it is anyway. It was one of my favourites, but to no fault of the producer’s because the riddim itself is BEAUTIFUL, I just felt as though it didn’t get the vocal performances, in full, that it deserved, but now you can be the judge. To my opinion, the best two pieces here are ‘Island Lover’ and ‘Friend Indeed’ from Agent Sasco [bka Assassin] and Bugle, respectively and then it goes downhill as artists like Konshens, a seemingly disinterested Raine Seville and Omari just miss the mark here. And while I wasn’t blown away by their efforts, to me, both Jay MacKay and a vocally impressive Ryan Mark also do nice things with their efforts. But now you’ll be the judge of that and again, the riddim itself is excellent and thankfully there is a clean version of it on the album.

Potential Rating: 3.75/5
Releases on September 14
Digital

"Singles Vol. 1" [2 Hard Music]

2010 has marked a fairly significant occurrence in terms of Dancehall production as, returning to the top of the genre has been an increasingly active Jeremy Harding and his once mighty 2 Hard Music label. After investing years as a producer (which were highlighted by the fact that he vibed the Playground Riddim, relatively early in his career which, of course, would go on to back Beenie Man’s majestic hit, ‘Who Am I’) Harding struck gold with Sean Paul and would, effectively, leave production to guide the career of the then burgeoning superstar. Well he’s back now and after dropping two fairly successful projects, the excellent City Life and the recent Circus riddims, 2 Hard Music is now just pushing a very random collection of ”Singles”. This six track set features tunes from Beenie Man, Elephant Man, ‘Sassin, Alaine, Laden and newcomer Denyque. I’m always glad to see the label doing anything, this included, so definitely look out for it.

Potential Rating: 4/5
Releases September 21
Digital

State Of Urgency Riddim [Payday Music]

Much like Hemp Higher, it doesn’t seem as if Payday Music wastes much time between productions as, coming right on the heels of their last release, the Style Dem Riddim, is the brand new State of Urgency Riddim. This one has a bit more of a ‘STOMACH’ to it, to my opinion, and I actually like it (despite the fact that it has, easily, three of my least favourite artists on it. Of course, at the head of the release is the general, Bounty Killer with ‘Fed-Upper’ which I heard, actually, quite some time ago. And the riddim may be older, but I hadn’t heard further efforts from the likes of Predator (ugh) which is actually decent, Bling Dawg (ugh again) which I don’t like and Wayne Marshall whose ‘Jamaica Build Back’ is pretty good actually. Also on board is Bugle, Iyara and the usual suspects, Flexx and Nymron.

Potential Rating: 4/5
Releases on Tomorrow
Digital

Road Of Life Riddim [Suncycle Digital]

Impressive young UK label, Suncycle (cool name), continues its excellent run with a riddim which is absolute GOLD, the beautiful Road Of Life Riddim. You might recall Suncycle dropping the well received high powered Rise Up Riddim, which spawned Gappy Ranks’ big hit ‘Rise Out of The Ghetto’ and while it was necessarily a personal favourite of mine, it was decent and it did enough damage to put them on my radars (oh, and the digital cover for it was superb) (just like this one is), which helped to hype this one for me. The Road Of Life is certainly a different riddim from the Rise Up (showing some versatility). This one is a SPECTACULAR sounding slower piece which just kind of explodes when you listen to it and charged with handling the detonation are names like I-Octane, Hyah Slyce, Fyahkin, Dolamite (who I believe produced the riddim and owns the label), up and comer Damas, wicked agitated singer Tony Frass and others. This one has a whole heap of potential on it as does Dolamite and co. at Suncycle.

Potential Rating: 4.35/5
Releases on September 17
Digital

Ossie Dellimore - “Reggae Music” [Skank Productions]

And lastly, I just thought that I’d give you a bit of forewarning because I’m well planning on tuning this one up come Friday, but St. Vincy’s finest Reggae export, Ossie Dellimore is about to drop his second album , the much anticipated ”Reggae Music”. I’ve been looking forward to this one (literally) for years and finally the stars and planets have aligned themselves properly and Skank Productions have once again tuned in for the album. I already have this one and cannot wait to dive in because if his last album, ”Freedom’s Journal” (which was released 342 years ago) is any indication (and that MASSIVE tune ‘Time Has Come’, one of the best songs I’ve ever heard in my entire life), and it is, then we could be dealing with another excellent release from Mr. Dellimore.

Potential Rating: 4.75/5
Releases on September 10
CD & Digital

Beautiful Songs #26

What a very very strange day! Well, thankfully its over, I got absolutely nothing accomplished, but . . . yeah, there you go, I'm behind schedule and tomorrow, we'll be writing like mad. But, on to the songs. This week we have a familiar name, an unfortunately familiar name and a newbie who disappoints! Let's see!

Alright. I'll give the newcomer the first spot this week - My new friend Miguel, who gave me his entire life story pretty much, is from Italy (of course he didn't say which part) and so when I saw this and saw he had a tune, I was very excited. Maybe he'd pull out something I hadn't heard of before, maybe some new Lion D or something right? WRONG! It's Shinehead with 'Jamaican In New York'!

Okay next is a song which I don't even think was actually recommended, now that I read it better, but since I was going to post it anyway, I'll think I'll do it on behalf of JP, who I keep saying is from Washington DC and I'm right, but he now lives in North Carolina. So this week he's drawing (or I'm drawing for him) the excellent 'Move Militant' from VI Roots Queen, Dezarie. Big big tune, particularly when you haven't heard it in quite some time and I'm guilty as charged on that front yeah.

Andddddddd - Lastly, coming back for the first time (by my research) since week 14 (and I have no idea what number this is yet) (I want to say 23 maybe???) (no, it's 26) is everyone's least favourite reader, REMMY! Apparently Remmy was 'detained' in Fort De France for doing something with some type of "foul" and couldn't participate in the festivities (you know I love you Remmy). Anyway, Remmy checks in with what has to be his most ridiculous rec. to date, yes it's Shepp Dawg and yes it's 'Yes Garcon'. You will either HATE this song, or you will absolutely love it and wonder where you can get it. Ask someone else.

As for me, I'm shutting down everyone this week, I'm seeking a higher power and I'm seeking it in the form of the incomparable Peter Broggs, with 'Jah Jah Voice Is Calling'!

• Okay! Reviews this week (tentatively) from Lady Saw and Ossie Dellimore
• Check out my new friend Jessica Dore @ Bay Area Reggae Project
• If you have TUNES! I mean TUNES! I'm looking to maybe do something where I give one reader an entire Sunday of beautiful tunes. But you have to be able to cover a wide array of vibes with three songs so. If you have three, link me at AchisReggae@hotmail.com
• If you don't have three and just have one, then you can still link me at AchisReggae@hotmail.com. See you next week!
  

'Beautiful, Beautiful!': A Review of "The Beautiful Side of A Kreyol Folk Trip" by Stevy Mahy

Okay I know that I’m supposed to be this sort of two-brained vacuum like human being who literally sucks in new music and decides whether to regurgitate it to you beautiful people or to place it in my internal and ridiculously hard to remove, bag for disposal, but I have to admit - I’ve been slacking on the job. The Carnival season is good and gone and with it, it’s taken most of Soca for the next few months, I’ve pretty much had tunnel vision on Reggae and Dancehall, to the neglect, of course, of the subtle genius and crystal clearly beautiful genre of Zouk. Last year, two of my personal favourites, Kénédy [“Entre Toi Et Moi”] and Goldee [“Le Moi De May”], dropped albums and that should’ve been a pretty good sign that 2010 would be a ‘down’ year for me when it came to Zouk releases because, obviously, two of my favourite artists wouldn’t be doing albums. There’s also Thayna, who had an album in 2008, “Nouveau Départ”, which she’s still promoting apparently and artists like Fanny J, and Jessye Belleval and Lindsey Lin’s, all of whom, I believe, were slated to make releases this year, but as none of them have materialized as of yet, so my interest hasn’t been very high in waiting (although if you wanted to give me that Fanny J album, like yesterday, I wouldn’t mind none at all). It wasn’t until quite recently, over the past couple of months or so, that we REALLY began to take a listen and a look at Zouk 2010 and it was largely due to the fact that a well known Reggae label (it would be, wouldn’t it?) had chosen to make an entry (or a reentry) into the sweet genre as Don’s Music shot out with a release from the delectable Methi’S, “Mon Nid D’îles”. It’s been just about two months since that album dropped and having finally been through it, it’s just now starting to warm up to my tastes. Also, Don’s Music began working with a next (cutie) artist by the name of Ludy, who I’m also liking currently and that is, of course, right up my alley because at the same time, the label has been dealing with the likes of Admiral T, Paille and the Lieutenant, which makes coming into contact with their Zouk work a matter of ‘being in the right place at the right time’. Still, if I’m being really forthcoming, the final flare that caught my attention for Zouk music this year, technically wasn’t even a Zouk artist. No. Instead it was the hypnotic and downright SPACIOUS vibes of one Ms. Stevy Mahy.

Initially, it was the whirlwind created by the EPIC tune that was ‘Beautiful’ which jumped the Guadeloupe songstress on the radars of most, I’m sure, yours truly included, but when we got to know her better, what we learned was that Stevy Mahy was just full of interesting material - She has almost as much of it as potential. While hers is a story which is still largely a mystery to me, what we do know about Mahy is that she seems to have a bit of a globetrotting dynamic with her life. She’s obviously spent more than a little time in New York (more on that later) and Paris which has become not only a matter of fact in her life, but it’s made the fact that she seems to almost go out of her way to represent for Gwada so much more interesting. In doing so, as I alluded to, her style is clearly something much more influenced by ‘traditional’ Creole folk music, with Zouk and even a little R&B (and JAZZ) thrown in (but I make the point that in traditional Creole music, Jazz is, inherently, very present and represented), rather than being a straight up Zouk artist (although there’s certainly nothing wrong with that). Want more? Simply take a good look at Stevy Mahy. She is gorgeous and she is gorgeous in a very non-traditional way (although with those CURVES . . . Stop Achis) and her look and, by extension, her image of this very strong and womanly Creole person is something which you don’t usually see with the way in which Zouk singers are usually ‘dolled up’ to look like pixies (sexy pixies, mind you, but pixies still) in many cases (although I’d like to think that image is slowly, but surely changing in general). Back to her music - As I said, it was the early tune, ’Beautiful’, earlier this year which brought her to prominence and I have to say that I besides loving the song itself, I just love how it just seemed to pop up and then run its course through the usual channels, eventually progressing all the way to jumping up on the radars of my research via becoming a digital single. Stevy Mahy would also drop a second single (which I’ll tell you about in a minute) and did so just ahead of her brand new, debut album the delightfully titled ”The Beautiful Side of A Kreyol Folk Trip”. It is DEFINITELY the word “trip” which you’re best off focusing on as a listener, because the album takes us on a very nice and, of course interesting, trip through the mind and life of Stevy Mahy. By wonderful coincidence, this “trip” comes via the same B Caribbean that brought to the world the aforementioned golden Goldee and that also means that you can expect a ton of probably my favourite Zouk producer (not that I know so many of them, I’m still a Zouk rookie) (a Zoukie?), the professional, Mr. Joël Jaccoulet. The label, as far as I know, is based in Martinique and has been at the forefront of so many big projects within Zouk, which includes, of course, steering Goldee into stardom and ensuring that the mammoth shot of a tune that Stevy Mahy laid out would go on to SWEEP through the world as it did. That’s definitely no coincidence at this point: Obviously B Caribbean knows what they’re doing. That’s BEAUTIFUL because had this song and had this artist just kind of came up and jumped ‘in line’ with so many other artists, it would’ve been a damn shame. Mahy does so well at sticking out and drawing attention to herself by simply being herself and because of that (oh, and the fact that she just happens to make excellent music), it proves to draw this “trip” as one you’ll surely want to buy a ticket for.

The first thing you’ll hopefully notice about our journey is that our lovely captain, Stevy Mahy, is functionally trilingual throughout. The songstress, without warning, weaves her way between her native Creole, French and English and while I’m almost sure there is some sort of method to her linguistic madness, the fact that I have no idea what it is certainly doesn’t hurt much here. Our first stop on Stevy Mahy’s ”The Beautiful Side of A Kreyol Folk Trip” (I really don’t like long titles, but that is wonderful) is at the aforementioned second single for the album, ‘Something About You’. HOW SWEET IS THIS SONG? This is the tune you play when you want to stay in bed a couple of extra hours and open the window or just lay on the floor and PLAY (and I mean that literally) with your special someone and although I find better tunes on the album, this one is just a CRYSTAL of a song and a GLORIOUS way to get us started on this journey. Next, we hit ‘Yenki Pou Vou’ and . . . Yep. I mean . . . I’m certainly going to get tired of using ‘beautiful’ as an adjective, especially considering the album’s title and specifically what happens on track #5, but this tune is BEAUTIFUL! The smallest fragment of beauty certainly isn’t that ever so SLIGHT steel pan I hear at the end of the tune’s chorus, nor is it Stevy Mahy’s almost perfect vocals and her twisting linguistics (which just switch at mid-verse for absolutely no reason) (and I love it). And, were that not enough beauty, already, for ”The Beautiful Side of A Kreyol Folk Trip”, simply the TITLE of the next song, ‘DIVINE MAGIC JOY’, should make you smile as it did for me and my Wife, who hates everything. It’s going to sound lame, but I’m going to say it anyway - This song is like a BREEZE and if you haven’t already fallen in love with Mahy’s vibes, that should be wrapping up right about now (and even if it isn’t she still has something for you in just a bit) because this ghost of a tune is barely even here, but wherever it is, I’m with it and you will be too. HUGE start.

I was going to take this one in a most spellbinding twist before ultimately arriving at the pinnacle of our trip, but I think I’ll lay it out nice and early. Of course, I’m talking about the most beautiful moment along ”The Beautiful Side of A Kreyol Folk Trip”, ‘Beautiful’.

"You
Came into my life
I thought that I was dreaming because you -
Showed me a new dance of life
A new way to breath"

TEARS! This fucking song is the most perfectly titled creation of 2010 that I’ve heard, because it is just so nice, so airy, so angelic that it taps into nooks and crannies of emotions that just don’t get up and worked on too much (at least not for me), when listening to Zouk, for the most part (although I do love it still). It took over things fro Stevy Mahy and, thankfully, it has been the beautiful vehicle which has brought her and her music to us and will continue to going ahead, hopefully. AMAZING!

And I didn’t just sign up and join this trip for the opportunity to visit ‘Beautiful’ (although it was certainly worth the price of admissions on its own), I wanted the full joy of the experience and thankfully, Ms. Mahy makes our trip so much of a FULFILLING experience, besides relying on the attraction of that most captivating and capable of tunes. The two stops immediately following ‘Beautiful’, ‘Fame Is Gone’ and ‘Most High’, definitely caught my attention based on name value alone and the subsequent tunes that I heard just as definitely didn’t disappoint. The former speaks of this kind of future of former stars who just can’t seem to adapt to ‘regular’ and ‘everyday’ life. It’s one of the most lyrically impressive efforts on the whole of the album (and a lot of English, but it switches without warning) - “Fame by any means, but fame means enemies” - and the way the tune kind of EXPLODES down its stretch is very impressive and lovely as well. For its part, ‘Most High’ is a song where you must forgive me because I’m a Reggae head, so you KNOW what I thought this song was about and I was kind of correct in my assumption because it does at least appear to find Mahy reaching and calling upon a Higher Power, but it has a bit of flexibility in it and she may very well be speaking of ‘falling in love’ in the general sense. I would imagine, however, that she might make the case that both are one in the same and if she would, then good on her! And to place a nice bow on the first half of ”The Beautiful Side of A Kreyol Folk Trip”, we look at another very strong effort, ‘San Vou’. The attraction here is ‘simply’ the sonic appeal of this song first and foremost, and later we deal with the fact that it’s also inspirational and just well done. While this one may not have a whole heap of flare and may not attract much initial attention, truth be told - It’s probably one of the strongest efforts here.

The first actual song during the second half of our trip, ‘Falling In Love Again’, was one I was prepared to say that I didn’t like too much up until a couple of paragraphs ago when it finally clicked with me for some reason. The song features singer AB and it kind of has an R&B type of appeal, but it sounds like old school minimalist R&B and Stevy Mahy sounds like an enthused version of Alicia Keys or Jill Scott to AB’s smokiest of D’Angelo. Ultimately, I feel it works because of the ‘mood’ of the song which never seems to step beyond its boundaries in terms of being COMPLETELY unaware of what other music is on the album and the type of artist that we’re dealing with, who is very talented. So well done. Next in is the less ‘traveling’ and extremely RELAXED vibes of ‘What’s Going On’. The song is actually about Mahy questioning her own motives and actions which have obviously lead to a spoiled relationship, but I’m sorry Stevy, I feel your pain, I’ve been there (BELIEVE ME, I’ve been there) (SHIT, I’ve LIVED there for YEARS at a time in the past), but this song sounds so good that I’m having a really hard time moving passed that fact to find out what’s really going on. That being said, it doesn’t sound as good as what may just be my second favourite tune along ”The Beautiful Side of A Kreyol Folk Trip”, ‘Shine On Me’. The word I’m thinking of is BEAUTIFUL. Yet another beautiful tune for this album, highlighted by the fact that I nearly jumped out of my chair (scaring the hell out of the cat) when, with approximately twenty second remaining in the song, Stevy Mahy goes all Luciano on the people:

“No night in Zion, there is no night there
No night in Zion, there is no night there”

And it works and it’s appropriate for the song and - Just wow. Huge huge piece. Next up we relax things back just a bit on ‘Si’w Pé’, maybe one of the most ‘traditional’ Creole tracks on the album and, simultaneously, one of the most infectious. The tune starts off so nice and easy, but its intensity seems to rise and rise and by its end we clearly have one of the most colourful and ‘visually’ attractive selections on the trip. And for our final stop, ‘Mon Cœur Mon Ange’, Captain Mahy goes French for the most and in doing so creates an excellent ending. Really like the chorus on this one and the while it still certainly doesn’t sound quite ‘flashy’ enough to be considered Zouk (not even by my not so intelligent ears), it’s still lovely and has the same effect, I’m sure. Also, I should mention the presence of two skits. One ‘4:37 PM Harlem [NYC]’ appears to feature Mahy bumping into an old friend in New York and, lo and behold, the tune which follows it is the aforementioned R&B-ish ‘Falling In Love Again’ (the interlude actually features a woman asking Mahy “so why are you here in New York” in a crowded space and then the tune starts, seemingly to answer the question - She came to get the vibes). And the other piece is essentially an outro, ‘3:55 PM Les Abymes [Guadeloupe]’ and it finds Stevy Mahy, her beautiful trip completed, relaxing and enjoying the lovely day.

Overall, I don’t know if you could tell from the review, but I absolutely love this album. As I said, I was looking for something to kind of reignite my passion and taste for Zouk music and despite not really being a Zouk album (even though I’m going to label it as such), ”The Beautiful Side of A Kreyol Folk Trip” from Stevy Mahy has, essentially, done just that. More importantly, it’s also given to me and the entire world a potentially DOMINANT talent in French Caribbean music (and you can certainly take that in the all-encompassing sense, in terms of genres) because I would suggest that, because of her VERY relaxed style, Mahy might find very responsive audiences in genres like traditional R&B and Jazz and maybe even Pop to some degree. But, because such successes may require more effort than Mahy is willing to give or offer more than she simply wants (from what I’ve read about the singer she REALLY seems to be focused on making her mark on music in Guadeloupe in particular and representing it), we may have her ALL to ourselves. I’m not going to be the one to complain because when next Stevy Mahy packs up and takes another trip like this one, I’ll definitely be on board, no matter where she's headed. EXCELLENT!

Rated: 5/5 [4th Five Star of the year]
BCaribbean
2010
Digital

Stevy Mahy @ Myspace
Stevy Mahy @ Twitter

Words of The Week: 'Garrison' by Lutan Fyah

'Garrison' by Lutan Fyah

Give thanx you know
Yeah
Blessings and Salutations
This for one love, this for one cause
This to educate, this to entertain
Whoa

Tell me what’s the reason why the youths them suffer
When everything is there, for us to inherit in life
We never get enough of, High Society they bank all the wage and a say samfi
They mad their the rules and laws
Ghetto living is a mess, for us, no man cares at all
Hungry belly pickney, white squall, yet still we survive it all

Deep in the garrison, the garrison!
People ah face sufferation caan done
Down inna di garrison, the garrison
Nuff youth caan tek it and dem turn to di gun
Deep in the garrison, the garrison!
People ah face sufferation caan done
Down inna di garrison, the garrison
6 foot deep some gone under ground

Hey dem say money is essential, first education come
They pay the price on the GSAT curriculum
And if you fail the literacy test they say you dumb
Yet we send the youth to learn the language and the songs
What a ting inna society!
Dem no provide di people wid no job opportunity
So dem lock we inna ramshackle community
Rob di people of their unity

Deep in di garrison, di garrison!
People ah face Sufferation caan done
Down inna di garrison, the garrison
Nuff youth caan tek it and dem turn to di gun
Deep in the garrison, the garrison!
People ah face sufferation caan done
Down inna di garrison, the garrison
Nuff gone 6 feet deep underground

These leaders go all for themselves
For the people, dem no care
Dem ah brought di bread, but wid di youths dem, dem no share
These false promises getting nowhere
Di youths dem inna doubt and fear
Words without commitment
And I no see no upliftment
All I can see is peer detriment
Board house and zinc fence

Deep in di garrison, di garrison!
People ah face Sufferation caan done
Down inna di garrison, the garrison
Nuff youth caan tek it and dem turn to di gun
Deep in the garrison, the garrison!
People ah face sufferation caan done
Down inna di garrison, the garrison
Nuff gone 6 feet deep underground . . .

Deep in di garrison, di garrison!
People ah face Sufferation caan done
Down inna di garrison, the garrison
Nuff youth caan tek it dem go turn to dem gun
Di garrison, di garrison . . .

Taken from the Good Groove Riddim album from Chiney K Productions
Chiney K Productions @ Myspace

Stuff: A September to Premember???

Yow!
Ding, dong, August is gone! It was most cruel, it was most disgusting, but finally we have laid August 2010 to rest! Hip-Hip Hooray! Okay, so now on to September 2010, a month which just seems to grow bigger and bigger and bigger. 3 big ass releases highlight the month (at least) and I'll be telling you about them shortly, but first, let's talk about what's been going on here.

First up is the fact that I have 'evolved' my style to such a degree, that I'm now able to write two, three and sometimes even FOUR different reviews at one time. The fact is that last night I wrapped up a review for some random album which, because I pretty much have the next few weeks locked up, I might not even push up until October. And the review you just read, for "Digital Acoustics" was completed, maybe a week ago. So biggup me for that. Evolution at Achis Reggae. Ooooh! And in even bigger adult-like news, I got a second COMPLETE shower installed at my house and that makes me, of course, THE MAN.

And in terms of responses. We've still gotten quite a bit for Toussaint's album (particularly a lot from my regulars) and you wonderful people have also reacted well to Gappy Ranks' album and even Maikal X to a degree (even though it STILL hasn't been released really). So biggup all the reaction and I hope you find something you enjoy.

So what's up for September? Listen me!

• Expect reviews from the BIG trio of albums from Lady Saw, Duane Stephenson and Buju Banton (in that order), with Ms. Marion Hall going first, next Tuesday. Joining them - You can also look for reviews from new albums from people like Bobby Tenna, maybe Ras Midas, my first review of September, coming this Friday - Stevy Mahy - and who knows who else really. BIG BIG month.
  

• I have a really cool idea for an article, which unfortunately is going to require a bit of research on my part, but I'm SO confident about it, that I'm thinking about starting it . . . like Today. But that should definitely pop up sometime this month, probably sooner, rather than later. Very interesting situation that I've noticed and a few people have spoken on as well.
  

• Always on the lookout for ideas for new and interesting lists (so if you have one - AchisReggae@hotmail.com - But I'm pretty sure I have a good one for my next installment and the one after that will be the part two of the "Nearly Perfect" feature, which I may actually do as soon as next week. So look out for at least two lists this month.

• I don't like doing interviews (OBVIOUSLY), but I have a REALLY interesting idea for one and it's with a person whose been really accessible to me in the past and one whom my readers have (surprisingly) reacted to quite well. So, this may be something which (IF it's going to happen) is more likely for October, but who knows! So look out for yet another clumsy ass interview from Achis Reggae (but this one might be cool).

• And, of course, just be on the lookout for the usually ridiculously long posts from yours truly. I have two nice ideas (one of which may get me slapped in the face) for Completely Random Posts (and if I actually post tomorrow, you may see one of them then, same thing for Saturday). And everything else I do and always be sure to check my people at UnitedReggae.com for other things I'm working on as well. And DEFINITELY link me at AchisReggae@hotmail.com for any suggestions for big and beautiful tunes (or anything else), whatever you have going up each and every Sunday.

Biggup all of my friends too. Nico's been hanging around a bit, so has Dale Cooper, as always, JC's hopefully somewhere writing something, the guy from the Reggae Unite blog he's a very very nice person, Zalemmm (and all of his M's) from Bass Culture - always biggup Zalemmm and Daniel from IReggae and VIReggae.

And my other (no so writing) people. People like Bredz, people like everybody at Lion Zeal. The Zojak people (hey Zoe!), Susan about to return I believe. Hey Susan. Biggup Heather from Truckback, hopefully somewhere working on a Goldee link. Biggup Calla, biggup JP, biggup Allan, OOOOOOOOOOOLD John from way back when, Phillip, Asher biggup yourself. John B, wherever you are. John B rolls around . . . I forget where John B lives, I want to say Washington DC for some reason, absolutely BLASTING Reggae in his Cadillac and, by my estimation, that may just make him the coolest man in the world. Biggup Queen Majeeda who just emailed me (look how cool I am, I get random email from people like Queen Majeeda!).

Biggup Tippy and Toussaint and NiyoRah and everybody at I-Grade Records, because they have a new website which is gorgeous, so go and check it out.

I think that's it, enjoy September and enjoy the sounds.

TUUUUUUUUUUNE! One song has been DAMAGING me from since I woke up this morning, and went back to sleep and woke back up. It's 'Rastaman In The Hills' from Ras Shiloh.

Pictured

Lady Saw

"My Way"

September 7

Get it, don't ask questions

It's Lady Saw

Fool


{Wrote it before the news of Spragga}